As a dismal quarter for retail earnings winds down, this week's batch of quarterly reports may hold some rare positive news for the beleaguered group of stocks.
Among the companies scheduled to report on Thursday before the opening bell are Dollar Tree, Tiffany and Abercrombie & Fitch; GameStop and Ulta Beauty are set to report after the market close. And on Friday, Big Lots is set to announce its earnings before the market opens.
"This has been an unusually disappointing quarter for retailers, with only about half of the companies beating estimates, while over 70 percent in the have beaten those estimates. This is the last week where we could see some positive surprises," said Erin Gibbs, portfolio manager at S&P Global.
Some of the weakness seen in the retail space, aside from Amazon's perceived and demonstrated impact on some brick-and-mortar retailers, comes as a result of consumers' predilection for entertainment and travel over retail products, she said.
On Wednesday after the closing bell, shares of retail conglomerate PVH rose on its reported quarterly earnings; its earnings per share and revenue both beat analysts' estimates.
Shares of Guess, too, rose after its earnings report Wednesday afternoon. Earnings per share, as well as revenue, topped analysts' expectations.
